Unions for tubing should effect a stable sealing joinder of the tubes without leakage of fluid from the tubes through the union.
This invention relates to affixing two elements together such as joining the ends of tubes with a union. In particular, the invention is concerned with the joinder of tubes which are thin walled and of light weight, have high strength, and are used typically in the aircraft industry.
It is known to connect the ends of tubes with a swaging sleeve which fits over the ends of the abutting ends of tubes. The swaging sleeve has a internal groove and land formation and an external tapered formation. An abutting collar on the outside surface of the sleeve causes the sleeve to deform inwardly. This in turn causes the ends of the walls of tubes to deform into mating relationship with the grooves and lands. This creates an effective seal between the sleeve and the ends of the tubing.
The construction for creating this engagement requires at least the collar over the outside surface and usually two more interengaging screw-threaded members over the sleeve which are permanently housed about the sleeve. The interengaging housing members are screwthreaded together by wrenching action on the housing members. This affects the union assembly.
If the housing members are reverse screwed from the sleeve, a collar could be removed. This would leave only the sleeve and butting tube ends. There would be no security between the butting tube ends and the sleeve. Additionally, there is no way to remove the housing members from the tubing. As the housing members are relatively sturdy elements, they add considerable weight to the union. Naturally, in aircraft use, excess weight should be avoided.
Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a union assembly with a minimum number of components. The union should effectively provide for sealing engagement between the ends of tubing in a positive manner to avoid leakage.
Another object of the invention is to provide a mechanism and method for affixing two elements together and to leave the elements so assembled with a minimum number of components and preferably in a means of sealing relationship between the elements.